[2][3][4] Soutendijk attempted to establish herself in the United States in the late 1980s, and appeared in the science fiction film Eve of Destruction (1991).

[1] The movie that marked her breakthrough as an actress in a major role, though, is considered to be The Girl with the Red Hair (1981), in which she played Dutch resistance fighter Hannie Schaft.

Her subsequent TV movie roles included Anna Mons in Peter the Great (1986) and Mrs. Simon Wiesenthal in Murderers Among Us (1989).

[15] She also acted in German television movies (and series, including Tatort) in which, she said, she was rarely typecast and played more interesting characters.

[8] The films Dial 9 and Met grote blijdschap (With Great Joy), which were both released in 2001, marked her return to the Dutch movie-screen after a four-year absence.

[21][22] In 2018, Soutendijk had a supporting role in Luca Guadagnino's Suspiria, a reimagining of the Dario Argento film of the same name.